by Linda Verji
Fine, two shouldn’t have counted, but at the time it did. His acrimonious relationship with Angelina had only made him more determined to beat her in court and blinded him to any inconsistencies in the case. So what if Kelly and her father, Jesse, kept insisting that she was innocent? So what if the look in her eyes left him a little unsettled? All criminals claimed to be innocent, and all the evidence clearly pointed to Kelly being a murderer.
Little did he know that most of the evidence he had had been carefully doctored to lead to Kelly and all his witnesses had been carefully coached to point the finger at her. While Spencer was busy celebrating sending Kelly to prison and getting back at Angelina, Jesse had kept investigating and trying to find a witness who could prove his daughter’s innocence.
Unfortunately, Jesse’s investigations had taken him too far into the shadows. He’d ended up dead. It was his murder and that of one of the prosecution’s witnesses, Pick, that had spurred Spencer to take another look at the case. Further investigation had led him to Pick’s thoroughly frightened ex-girlfriend, Dominique.
And that’s when the real story had come out.
Yes, Pick had witnessed the murder in that nightclub’s VIP room. But it wasn’t Kelly he’d seen killing Claire Ingram. Nope! The real culprit was Claire’s cousin, Jonas Ingram, the now sole heir to the one of the richest families in New York. Claire and Jonas had struggled while Claire was trying to keep him and his friends from raping a drugged Kelly. Blinded by anger, Jonas had stabbed Claire with a broken bottle. After realizing what he’d done, Jonas had convinced his friends and Pick, the room’s exclusive waiter, to say that Kelly did it.
Spencer realized that he’d sent the wrong person to prison.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, his own boss, Donald Hall, had known that Jonas was the culprit and covered it up. According to Pick’s ex-girlfriend, Pick had had a change of heart after seeing Kelly in court. He’d tried to see Spencer to confess that he’d lied but had instead been directed to the D.A., Donald. Unfortunately, Donald was planning to run for governor and needed the Ingrams’ money to fund his campaign. Donald had turned Pick back with a threat to remain silent or else… What Donald didn’t know was that Pick had an inconvenient habit of sneakily filming the going-ons in the VIP room so he and his girlfriend could laugh at it later. And he had a video that clearly showed Jonas stabbing his cousin.
Pick had planned to hand over the video to Kelly’s father but Jonas’s hired gun got to him first, then came after Jesse when Pick claimed not to have the video. As it turned out, Dominique was holding the video all along. That video turned out to be the key piece of evidence in proving Kelly’s innocence. When Spencer had finally revealed the truth, the ensuing brouhaha had been of epic proportions. Jonas and Donald Hall both ended up going to prison.
Though Spencer’s colleagues praised and sided with him in public, their private whispers weren’t as supportive. Nobody likes a tattle-tale, they said.
Not that Spencer cared.
Miles was wrong. The whispers and awkwardness hadn’t driven Spencer to take a break. It was the hollow feeling in his stomach every time he walked into his office. For so long he’d thought that he was on the right side of the law, fighting for justice and that he was a damn good lawyer. However, Kelly’s case had left him reeling with doubts about the system, his beliefs and about himself. Her case had torn open wounds he didn’t even know he had and exposed all his biases.
“This is my stop.” Miles dragged Spencer from his thoughts as the doors opened on the third floor.
“I’ll see you around then.” Spencer gave the man a brief wave before he headed up to the fifth floor.
Though Chambers & Quinn occupied three floors in this building, the fifth floor was where all the big shots hung out. All the managing partners had their offices up here. In keeping with its occupants’ enormous clout, the floor’s reception area was plush and luxurious.
“Good morning, Mr. Chambers.” The middle-aged receptionist immediately recognized Spencer when he stepped off the elevator. Smiling, she said, “It’s good to see you. We’ve missed you.”
“It’s good to see you too, Rita.” He smiled. “How have things been?”
“Fine as usual. Working hard.” Rita said. “How was your trip?”
“Good. Good.” Spencer said, “I’m meeting Lawrence.”
“He’s not here yet.” Rita winced. “Do you want me to call him and let him know that you’re here?”
“Please do. I’ll wait for him in his office.” With that, Spencer headed to Lawrence’s office.
Lawrence’s office was large, spacious and opulent. Floor to ceiling bookcases lined one wall, dark furniture made of expensive wood and the finest leather filled the space, and the faint smell of cigars hovered over the room. Spencer settled on the couch with a magazine as he waited for his godfather.
Twenty minutes later, Lawrence still hadn’t arrived. He was just about to call him when he heard the man’s booming voice outside the door. Seconds later, the door opened and Lawrence walked in.
Lawrence Quinn was a man of massive girth. Though he matched Spencer’s six foot three height, he carried at least a hundred more pounds on him. Though most people noticed his weight first, it was his general demeanor that captivated them. Lawrence always seemed to be smiling. His grins, blue twinkling eyes and smooth tongue had brought in more clients for Chambers & Quinn than any other lawyer in the firm.
Spencer studied him with narrowed eyes. “You’re late.”
“Am I? Oh well, it’s not like you were doing anything important,” the older man retorted unrepentantly before his large face broke into a smile. “You look good for a man who went into hiding.”
“I didn’t go into hiding.” Spencer set aside the magazine he was reading. “I took a break.”
“Tomato, tomayto.” Lawrence dragged him in for a warm embrace before jauntily patting his back. “You’ve gotten skinnier.”
“And you’ve gotten fatter,” Spencer countered with a grin.
“This is how real men look.” Lawrence patted his protruding belly fondly before taking the armchair. Spencer settled back on the couch. For a while the two men discussed Spencer’s travels but mid-conversation, Lawrence asked, “Did you see anyone interesting when you came in?”
“Anyone interesting like who?” Spencer asked, even as Kelly’s face darted through his thoughts.
Lawrence eyed him for a moment then shrugged. “Never mind.”
“Was I supposed to see someone?” Spencer persisted.
Instead of answering the question, Lawrence changed the subject. “Now that you’re back in the city, what’s your plan? Are you going back to the D.A.’s office?”
Spencer shrugged. “I haven’t decided yet.”
“Which means I still have a chance.” Lawrence grinned widely. “Come and work for me. Howey just retired and I need a good criminal defense attorney to replace him.”
“No thanks.” Spencer’s voice was firm and determined. But it wasn’t enough to deter his godfather.
“Why not?” The older man offered, “I’ll pay you a great salary and you can come in as a junior partner.”
“Not a chance.” Spencer shook his head.
Lawrence upped his offer. “I’ll make you senior partner within a year.”
“Thanks but no thanks.”
Lawrence puffed in obvious frustration. “I don’t know if you know this but you can be very annoying.”
Spencer laughed. “How could I possibly not know when you’ve told me I’m annoying so many times?”
“Why won’t you just work for me?” Lawrence whined. “You’re a talented lawyer, you know the ins and outs of the criminal justice system, and the public still thinks of you as the righteous A.D.A who was brave enough to investigate his boss. Even better, this firm has your name on it and you’re both your father and my only heir. You could have it all.”
“I don’t want it all.”
“Why no
t?”
Spencer just shrugged. If he’d been after money, he would’ve come into the firm straight from Law School. Instead, he’d chosen to work for the state because for him getting justice for victims of crime was more important than padding his already fat bank account.
Oh! What a naive man he’d been.
Thankfully, he didn’t have to answer any more of Lawrence’s questions because right then someone knocked on the door. A second later, the door swung inwards and Angelina Ward walked into the room. Immediate surprise shot through Spencer. What the hell was his ex-girlfriend doing here?
Angelina looked just as shocked to see him. Her gaze fixed on him, she said, “I didn’t know you were here.”
“I didn’t know you were here,” Spencer countered.
“She works here now,” Lawrence answered Spencer’s questions. He turned his gaze to Angelina. “Can I help you?”
“She works here?” Spencer cut in before Angelina could say anything. He shot his step-father a sharp look. “You didn’t tell me.”
“I didn’t think I had to.” The older man grinned. “But if you worked here, I would keep you in the loop about all my major decisions and hires.”
Crafty old man! Spencer glared at him.
Angelina spoke up. “Lawrence, are you the one who called Kelly Garner in for an interview?”
What? Shock like a thunderbolt zipped through Spencer. So that’s why Kelly had been here?
“What are you talking about? Who is Kelly Ga-” Lawrence sucked in a quick breath. “Oh, that Kelly Garner.”
“Yes, that Kelly Garner.” Irritation flashed in Angelina’s eyes. “Did you call her in for an interview?”
“No. That’s HR business. I didn’t even know she was still in the field.” Lawrence’s eyes lit up and he leaned forward. “Is she still in the field?”
“Then who called her?” Spencer asked before Angelina could.
“I don’t know,” Lawrence said, but something about his wide-eyed look of innocence sounded off alarm bells in Spencer’s psyche. The older man turned those wide eyes to Angelina. “I would’ve thought you’d be happy to see her.”
“I was – I am.” Angelina paused to take a deep breath. “I was happy to see her but not happy about how you set up the interview. How could you put her in front of Roland and Mark? You know what assholes they can be.”
“Those are your colleagues,” Lawrence reminded her even as he tried to hide his smile.
“They can be my colleagues and assholes too,” Angelina countered. “If you really wanted to hire her, you should’ve made it a private interview.”
“I told you, I’m not the one who called her in.”
Angelina gave him a distrustful look before saying, “Fine, I’ll believe you. But on one condition…”
“On one condition?” Lawrence snorted. “I think you’ve got us confused. I’m the boss here. I give the conditions here.”
Angelina ignored his correction and demanded, “Hire her.”
Lawrence’s eyebrows shot up. “What?”
“Hire her,” Angelina repeated firmly.
“Why?”
“Because she’s looking for a job.”
“So are plenty of other people.” Lawrence guffawed. “And I don’t hire on pity.”
“This wouldn’t be pity.” Angelina settled in the couch opposite Spencer. Her eyes on Lawrence, she said, “Kelly is the best candidate from everyone who came to the interview today. She was the top of her class, passed the bar on her first try and has experience working as a court clerk.”
“That was a lifetime ago,” Lawrence countered.
“Two years isn’t a lifetime,” Angelina shot back.
“Maybe it wouldn’t be if she was actually using her law degree, but she wasn’t.” Lawrence lifted one eyebrow. “What was she doing that whole time?”
Angelina didn’t answer but her eyes flashed in annoyance.
“You’re right!” Lawrence answered himself. “She was relaxing in prison.”
“I’m sorry,” Spencer couldn’t help butting in. “Did you just say relaxing in prison?”
“That’s what it looks like on paper,” Lawrence retorted unrepentantly. “Plus with her background, no jury will trust her. Now that her juvenile record was unsealed and she’s been revealed to be as much a criminal as the people we defend, her law degree has become useless. It would be worth more if it was toilet paper. No one wants to be defended by a crook. That’s why no firm will touch her. So why should I?”
Angelina’s lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but then she closed her mouth again as if to acknowledge that Lawrence had a point. Lawrence smirked.
It was that smirk that got to Spencer and before he knew it, he ended up saying, “You’re wrong.”
“Wrong about what?” His godfather turned his attention to him.
“About Kelly’s degree becoming useless.” Spencer pulled in a deep breath. “Sure her records were unsealed, but she’s got the public’s pity too because everyone knows she was wrongfully accused. She’s the poster child for someone working hard to change their life then getting screwed over by the system anyway. Every potential juror in this city probably already knows her and the injustice she suffered, and every time she stands in front of them, they’ll wonder if her client is being screwed over too.”
“You may be right. But she’s still a risky hire.” Lawrence’s eyes suddenly lit up as if he’d been struck by an idea. “But you know what would make her less risky?”
“What?” Spencer asked.
“If she and the lawyer who saved her teamed up.” His eyes on Spencer, Lawrence grinned. “Miss Wrongfully Convicted and Mr. Righteous; juries would fall over themselves trying to give you two ‘not guilty’ verdicts.”
It seemed like a spur-of-the-moment suggestion. But Spencer knew his godfather too well. “You old, crafty bastard! You called her in for the interview, didn’t you?”
“I told you I didn’t,” Lawrence insisted, but the smile tugging at the corner of his lips belied his words.
“That’s why you asked me if I’d seen anyone interesting.” Spencer glared at the older man. “Kelly is bait, isn’t she?”
This time Lawrence didn’t bother denying it. He just stared at Spencer with that annoying smirk playing on his lips. This was blackmail at its finest.
Spencer didn’t want to give in to his godfather. Defending criminals was the last thing he wanted to do. But then Kelly’s face flashed in his mind sending fresh guilt spurting through him. Chambers & Quinn was one of the biggest and well-respected firms in the city. Working for them would restore her reputation as a law professional and repair some of the damage he’d done to her. Surely, this was the least he could do for her.
“So what do you say?” Lawrence prodded.
“Fine.” Spencer sighed. “If you hire Kelly, I’ll come in.”
CHAPTER 2
“What can I get you?” Kelly asked as she stood by Table Six with her pen poised over her notepad.
“A glass of fresh mango juice and…” The man seated at the table paused briefly to study his menu. His forehead drawn in a frown, he asked, “What dessert would you recommend to go along with it?”
“Everything here tastes really good,” she said, “but if I had to choose, I’d go with the strawberry cream-cake.”
“The strawberry cream cake it is.” With a smile, the man handed her the menu.
“It should be about ten minutes,” Kelly said before heading off to the counter to place the order.
As was usual these days, Lani’s was booming with business. Though the café wasn’t a terribly big place, it was bursting at the seams. Almost all the tables were occupied by hipsters, couples and college-age kids. They were a marked difference compared to the older crowd who’d patronized the café when Kelly’s father still owned it.
Kelly wasn’t really sure what had drawn the younger crowd in. The décor and layout was still the same. It was just ten
two-top tables along the exposed brick walls, floor-to-ceiling windows that faced the busy street, and ten oversized armchairs arranged in groups and nestled into cozy corners. Maybe they liked the new owner; he was certainly hip enough to fit in with this crowd.
“One mango and cream-cake,” she said to the acne-ridden teenager behind the register. Moments later, the customer’s order was ready, and Kelly carted it to him.
“Miss, more coffee here,” a feminine voice trilled just as Kelly started back towards the counter.
Kelly turned to face the ‘customer’ a.k.a. Sin. Sin was parked at one of the tables at the corner giving herself a manicure. Seated across from Sin was a handsome bespectacled man who was engrossed with a game on his tablet. With a roll of her eyes, Kelly grabbed a jar of coffee from the counter then started towards the pair.
“You’re supposed to be working not ordering,” Kelly scolded Sin even as she poured some coffee into her friend’s mug.
“This is me working,” Sin said as she gingerly picked up her mug to sip her coffee.
“Teddy, do you need a refill too?” Kelly asked Sin’s companion.
Theodore Cole, better known as Teddy and the new owner of Lani’s, didn’t even look up from his tablet as he said, “Yes, please.”
“How is doing your nails working?” Kelly asked Sin as she filled up Teddy’s mug.
“I am working.” Sin waggled her fingers as if to dry her nails. “This is my job.”
Kelly guffawed. “Really?”
“Really.” Sin nodded. “My job is to look good. I’m the new face of Lani’s.”
“The new face of – what?” Kelly shot her friend a wide-eyed look. “Since when did the café have a position like that?”
“Since yesterday,” Sin insisted. “Ask Teddy.”
Teddy nodded. “Yes, it’s a new position that I created just for Sin.”
“Did she con you or something?” Kelly made a horrified face. “Blackmail?”
Teddy laughed. “Nothing like that.”